Sleepless in SC

Ugh. It's almost 4:00 am and I've been awake since 2:00. Of course, today kicks off a crazy busy time at work where my long hours start and here I am, wide awake and feeling kinda sick. Probably from lack of sleep! I think I'm getting too old for this job - the crazy hours kick my butt.

Last week I enjoyed lunch with Macy at preschool. She'd asked me if I could see her at school a few weeks before. I knew if I didn't go now, it would be awhile before I'd be able to take off work again. 

In celebration of Grandparents' Day, they were invited to lunch with the grand kids, so MawMaw was meeting us there, too. When she sees me she says, "Bethie! Where's MawMaw?" Oh well, she and MawMaw are besties. ;) 

She was so afraid of the tire bridge. But she conquered it! And was so proud of herself! We were very proud, too. 

Did I mention my 40th birthday was in September? Oh yeah, FORTY!!! (Pumpkin donuts. Ohhhh yeah)

Someone decided to decorate my mailbox and roll my yard... Wonder who? I still have streamers in the bushes...the ROSE BUSHES. So yeah those decorations maybe be staying. 

What a sunrise!! So beautiful! It's been a while since I've seen one so I really soaked up this one.

Maybe I should do this blogging in the middle of the night more often - I passed out with the phone on my chest! woop woop! It's Monday, ya'll, go have a wonderful week.  :)

Name them One by One

Count Your Blessings, Name them One by One.
Count Your Many Blessings, See What God Has Done.

Don't ya'll remember that hymn? I'm sitting here at my desk at work, staying late so I can type this up and post it before I leave for the weekend, and that is what popped into my head.

My family, we've had some serious trials lately.  It's been less than fun.  Heck, it's been down right crazy stressful. My sister-in-law had surgery, then my brother-in-law about a week later, then my dad a week later.  My close friend 6-hours away from me, her husband had a wreck and was in critical condition.  Now I'm having a biopsy to screen for uterine cancer.  And my b-i-l's last surviving close relative passed away yesterday.  Can I say I'm stressed out?!?  Because I really am.  We all are.

So yes, I'm asking for your prayers. 

But I'm also sharing with you some blessings we have seen:

So many wonderful people - including folks I'll never meet and don't know -
have been praying for us tirelessly.  That's so humbling. And powerful. 

Our preacher has been on the ball, really giving us support and we are so thankful. 

My workplace has been wonderful about me being out for all this
and my co-workers have texted to check on us continuously. 

The first surgery went well - and we are still seeing positive results! (hooray!)

I pray I meet my two nephews in December!

The second surgery went well - this was my b-i-l's 2nd back surgery in 5.5 months.
The hospital was HORRIBLE last time - but was just GREAT this time.
Talk about being thankful! 

The third surgery went really well. I was afraid mom would be there alone,
but my brother and our preacher were both there with her. Again - so thankful!

My time with Macy has just been a delight. Yes, she's definitely impacted by

all these events, but she's just been precious. Three nights she spent at my house

and I can't tell you how much I enjoyed it. 

My friend's husband is becoming more alert, nodding his head and rolling

his eyes at questions he thinks are ridiculous (Like her asking him if he knew her! haha)

A good friend is expecting and I'm so excited! I've decided it's a girl... :) 

There are dozens more, I'm just too tired to remember them all.  I'm trying to write more in my journals to remember those blessings because sometimes, you need to look back at all that is good in life.  And there is so much. 

Please keep us in your prayers.  And please celebrate the good things in life! :) 

Look at Me!

My family has been on one wild ride. I don't always cover all the details of life on here, but wow, we've been on a wild ride.  And this coaster has barely pulled away from the dock - we got a ways to go.

But, as I crawled in bed last night with my heart heavy and sad, I opened up this Bible verse journal that my penpal friend in Louisiana sent to me ages ago.  It is a smallish 4 x 6 journal, burgundy and black, with Rejoice on the front.  For a long time, I added Bible verses and quotes that touched me and I carried it in my purse.  As my purse become more and more heavy, I cleaned out, including taking my little journal out.

Just this week I ran across it and thought - I really need to keep that handy.  But of course, I kept going on and didn't actually pick it up and put it somewhere more accessible.

Last night, as my heart hurt and I just needed some encouragement, I thought about my little journal with all those Bible verses inside.  I got it and crawled back in bed.  I opened it up and this is what I found:

But the Lord stood with me 

and gave me strength. 

                          2 Timothy 4:17

So always trust the Lord

because He is forever 

our mighty rock. 

                      Isaiah 26: 4

It was like he smacked me in the head and said - BETH.  Listen to Me.  Look at Me.  I'm patiently waiting for you to simply ask Me for what you need. I am your ROCK and I'll give you the strength to get through this, you just need to ask. 

It reminded me of last Sunday when I went to pick up Macy from Children's Church.  She was out of the classroom (why, I don't know, but that's another issue) and was walking in the crowded hallway.  Being so short, all she could see were legs, legs, and legs.  I see her clearly and am just about to touch her when she stops in the hall and starts crying because she can't find her MawMaw.  I touched her and called her name, but she was too lost in her own fears at that moment and couldn't look up to see her Aunt Beth.  I called her and talked to her, and finally put my hands on both sides of her cheeks and crouched down to her level saying, "LOOK AT ME!"  And it was then that she finally saw me.  I still wasn't MawMaw, but that's another story, too (haha). 

That little book shows up so many times when I need it.  It's God's way of crouching down and grabbing me by the face and saying, "Look at Me!!"  :)

Marching Forward

How the heck did we end up in March already?  Heaven help, the time is zipping by and I feel like I'm getting left behind in a daze.

One thing that has me out of it - my health is having weird issues again.  Tummy and chest, scary stuff when you say chest issues.  I'm still trying to pay off the crazy bills from June so I really don't want to go somewhere and have more bills pile up.  I'm trying to stay calm and convince myself it's all tummy related like I was told it was so quit worrying that my chest hurts, too. *sigh* Do you pray? And if so, can you say a prayer for me? Thanks.

I also have an acquaintance - the wife of an old boyfriend (99% of the time I end on good terms, so no hard feelings) - she has some serious health issues with major surgery coming up at the end of the month.  March 23 to be exact.  I told her I believed in God and was sending up prayers for her, her family (they have three kids) and the doctors.  It's really serious stuff, so if you wouldn't mind saying a prayer for them, too, that would be great.  I appreciate it greatly.

I'm so excited - I introduced one of my online friends to one of my real life friend's online store and she loved it! I mean, I love her stuff, but it was so cool to connect someone else to it, too.  You are welcome to visit - she was interested in calligraphy and it just so happens my friend sells calligraphy teaching kits! I know, how perfect!  www.leenmachine.com Go ahead and click it - you know you want to. :)

Have you heard about these people who role play online by stealing other people's photos of their babies and children and such? They make entire role play lives around these photos of kids they don't know.  Seriously, go to twitter or instagram and look for #rpbaby.  Completely terrifies me of having pics of the sweet nieces online.  I'm sure someone thinks that's harmless, but I think it's horrible. Thoughts on this anyone? Because I'm half tempted to just take down the blog and keep my private instagram and private facebook.

On a much happier note, I'm heading to my brother and sister-in-laws for supper tonight and I'm taking Vulture Dip.  Sounds totally gross but it's yummy.  My brother is bonkers for it.  Just so happens I found the exact recipe I use online - here it is.  The blog is called "Food from the Forest" but she has the recipe there if you'd like to try it.  Think spinach, cheese, tomatoes, picante sauce... it's good, trust me.  I'll probably pass on it to play it safe, but I'm glad to bring him something he loves.

Ok, let me go get ready to head for their house.  I'll post cute pics again soon - once I figure out how to easily watermark them before posting. :) Happy Hump Day!

Fridays Letters 7-18-14

Happy Weekend! :) It's time for Friday's Letters!

This is now framed and in my hallway. Love it!

Dear God, thank you for taking care of me through these ups and downs. Bumpy road? Well, yes. But as I was passing the print made by Paulene that hangs in my hallway, I felt you right there with me. "Don't worry about anything, instead pray about everything."  Yes indeed. And thanks to all of you who have prayed with me.  No answers yet, but we are ruling out more serious issues. :)

Dear self, you must quit crying every time you get scared or nervous. And you have to learn to control your emotions and quit being so scared and nervous. :)  See above!

Dear crafty people, this is what I made last night while watching Big Brother (love that show, my dirty little secret).  I'm not sure I'm the best at it, but what do you think? Is this cute or annoying? Give me feedback, please! (I bought a massive box of buttons at a yard sale years ago and haven't done a thing with them. I finally sorted by color and am trying to find uses for these things. I love how some still have bits of thread and fabric in them!)

Dear Sweet Niece #2, you are such a trip. I love seeing you grow, learn, how you put things together in your mind, how sweet you can be, not as impressed with the sass but it comes with being 2, I think. It melts my heart when you run up to me and hug me around the legs, or hug my neck so tight.  I firmly follow the advice of a Disney Princess - I always let you let go of the hug first, because I want you to know you are loved.  

Celebrating Uncle Clay's Birthday!

Dear God (again), thanks for letting me appreciate your scenery and artistic expression in the drives to and from work (or the dr, or whatever). It's just good stuff. 

Ya'll have a great weekend and we'll see you back here next week.  

Roller Coaster of Life

Gracious me, it's been some highs and lows over the past few days.

Friday, in am attempt to do a good thing, a helpful thing, I sent wrong emails to 500 or so people. Actually half were right but how could I pick out the wrong from right? So I sent a retraction email asking everyone to ignore the first. But no one got it. So i send a third saying please ignore the first, seems no one is getting my second. You want to talk about confusing people because they ended up getting all three- at about three am. 

Did I mention I'm having weird heart issues? So When I first realized what I had done my heart felt like it was going to seize up one or fall out of my chest. My vision tunneled and I couldn't breathe I was so upset. Thankfully, it didn't kill me - I was a wreck. 

I got home about eight that night, walked into my house and it was beautiful. Cleaned from top to bottom. Tablecloth on the table with colorful flowers displayed in a mason jar in the center. All the dirty dishes gone. Clean clothes in the closet. My Christmas tree was decorated for the beach. Oh my gosh it was wonderful  

I cried. 

I totally lost it and bawled. Sobbed. It was such a horrible ending at work and I was feeling so low about myself.

To come into a house like this, where obviously someone loved me so much they came in and cleaned up my mess. Wanted me to come home to peace and calm and beauty. Thank you much, Mom  and Sister, I'm touched beyond words. 

Look at the pics and keep reading, there is more. 

Yes I have mismatched pillows. I sleep with so many and seriously, no one sees my pillows so all I care about is them being soft :) 

Ok so moving on to Saturday - I work six more hours trying to undo the email debacle and come home to crash. The past several month of long hours and stress are wearing me down. Everyone in the family is worried about me and how totally exhausted I am. 

I'm asleep by ten thirty that night. Wake up at four am and see a text message from my sister asking if I'm up, sent at midnight.  I text her - are you ok? And get a message back. "At kings mt bad pain in side. Don't know anything yet. Gave her morphine and antibiotic and something for nausc" - what?!?! Katie, my sister, was throwing up she was in so much  pain and had called mom and dad to help her. No one woke me because I'm so exhausted I needed my sleep. !!! So Dad was with Macy and Mom was with Katie and her husband was out-of-town. First dose of Morphine didn't touch her pain so four hours after her getting there, the ER decides to do a CT. She has a huge cyst on her ovary that needs to either decrease or rupture for her to get relief from the pain. They sent her home. 

Not knowing what was causing the pain and having it not respond to morphine really put us all in a panic. I prayed and prayed, texted a few friends to also please pray. God heard out prayers and gave Katie relief with the second dose of morphine. 

So Sunday was spent worrying about her. Her husband made it home by ten or so and has watched her like a hawk. Macy is having a slumber party with Mawmaw and Pawpaw. Katie was still in pain last night but it was manageable as long as she didn't have to get up and go to the bathroom. That caused more vomiting. Since I got no phone calls, I'm assuming no additional trips to the ER were needed last night. 

I'm ready for a break from stress and drama, y'all. I didn't mention I had my own ER visit last week? Week before? Plus two Dr visits after that due to fear. So I have a cardiologist appt in 8 days. And a host of doctors bills that should keep me broke for a long time coming. 

Y'all please pray for us - we are out of the woods yet with Katie and my life will improve once this final election is behind us. Thank you all so much. Share something wonderful about your life so i can celebrate with you - PLEASE!!! :)

Friday's Letters!

Be exuberant! :) 

Does anyone ever click on these random things I post from Etsy?  Just curious. Because Etsy houses some really cool things and I love finding new treasures when I need an image.

Anyway, toady is Friday- whoo hoo! and this week really zoomed by me.  Not that I'm not ready for the weekend, but since I'm working some this weekend, it doesn't have quite the same appeal. But it's all good. Let's dive into Friday's letters, shall we? I think it's time.

DEAR GOD - You are AMAZING and I'm so thankful that you respond to my worries and fears even when I don't tell You about them.  AND when you answered my worry, you also delivered me four shirts with my company logo on them... which was great! So yes, I hear You and I'm sorry! I'll try to do better about talking to You about everything.

Dear Sara - Enjoyed dinner this week and catching up on the funness of your life. And learning what the X sounds like in Spanish.

Dear American Idol & The Voice - Wow.  AI, you are just having a horrible season.  And I blame the judges because they are the ones that put these people through to this level.  But The Voice seems to be doing well so far! Love Shakeria and Usher over Christina and Ceelo (I'm sure I'm misspelling all these names, sorry).  So I'm much more excited about The Voice.

Dear Project Life - Holy cow your stuff is expensive!  (Anyone getting rid of Project Life stuff??) I purchased the starter kit and I'm excited to start my own scrapbook.  To catch up on the past 38 years of life and hopefully stay caught up. Gracious, it's going to be a journey.

Dear Raynore - I don't know what's changed yet (I'm guessing I'll hear in a letter!!) but I'm SO VERY HAPPY FOR YOU!  Watch out, NC, here she comes!

Dear happiness - thank you for visiting me.  Maybe the lack of sleep is making me giddy but I'll take it. :)  It sure ain't the weather making me happy (the weatherman said if this rain were snow, it would be 30-40".  CRAZY!) So happiness, come back and visit with me any time!

So there.  My letters to begin my weekend.  Ya'll have a good one and I'll see you back here on Wednesday, if nothing else! :)

Friday's Letters.

So so so so so happy it's FRIDAY! Let me do the CABBAGE PATCH of victory! :) Woop woop!

Bestie, Me and Sweet Niece #2 celebrating my birthday last week... yeah I know it's a week late. Sorry. 

Dear week, You've been a long one. I'm glad you are finished.

Dear year, I added up how many days I've taken off in the past year... and it's over 33.  So let's see some positive vibes with fewer sick people, how about it? Many thanks.

Dear Mornings, Yay for the return of fun drives to work!  I love beautiful sunrises to enjoy on my way to work... and I enjoy photographing them to share with you!

Dear Autumn, I am so ready for you.  For the rustic browns, yellows and oranges, for pumpkins and apples and all things autumnal.  For cool (not cold!) weather, for burlap, for cute kids in Halloween costumes. :)  Yay, thank you for Autumn!

Dear Saturday, I know I signed up to work on you, but now I regret it because I'm missing a pottery festival and a pumpkin festival! WWWHHHHAAAAAAA! I'm going to go cry now!  (In reality, I probably wouldn't have made it to either but I'm still going to pout about it.)

Dear New Contacts, I don't think it should feel like the world shifts every time I move my eyes. Or that I can see my eyes attempting to focus and things still come out blurry.  Looking forward to getting you checked out at the eye dr next week.

Dear Lord, Thank you.  I have sent up some serious prayers this week, and you have answered each one with a YES YES YES.  I know I don't deserve it, but thank you.  Thank you so much!

Have a great weekend, ya'll and I'll see you back here on Monday. :)

Link up your own letters -

Listen. Pray. Faith.

Sometimes it's amazing to me how I see the same message over and over. It's like God is telling me - HELLO!! Wake up girl and get this in your head!!

Do you have those moments, too? Or am I alone in this?

Some of the messages I keep seeing are:
1) Listen to God. Find His path for you and stay on it.
2) Worry about nothing, pray about everything.
3) Have faith. If you believe in God and believe His is always in control, have faith when you don't understand why something is happening or when things looks bad.

I told my sister this week I just feel like something huge is on the horizon and I'm holding my breath that I won't fail the test. And then again, I am not God, therefore, I cannot see the future and I'm just basing this on the fact that maybe if I'm prepared for a huge shoe to drop, I'll be ok when it does.  Which, once again, is not showing the faith I have. Or should have. *sigh*

So anyway, I know I've been a wee bit absent. I've been reading blogs, thinking of what to write and this is where I am at this point. Not that it's a bad place, I hope you don't feel that's what I'm saying here.  I'm learning, slowly, and absorbing and growing. So it's good. :)

Anyone else out there in this same place with me?

Every Day In May: Struggles

Today's prompt is about something you are struggling with and what you are doing to overcome it.



My family is struggling with my dad having bladder cancer. He completed his treatments and we waited. Yesterday, he went for his checkup and we found he'll be going back through treatments. We'll know how many after his biopsy.

So what am I doing about it? I am praying. I aM searching for verses of comfort and I encourage you to share a few! I'm drawing closer to God, talking to Him, and learning about faith in tough times. I'm trying to wrap my head around the fact I may not like the path God has given my Pop, but He is much greater than me.

So that is what we are facing round her. Feel free to send up a prayer on his behalf, the more the merrier! Thanks!

Every Day in May - Fears and Education

What do you fear?  Shirt sold here.

Continuing the theme of Blog Every Day in May (see button in sidebar).  Today - what do you fear?  I'm not really sure... I considered skipping this one, because who wants to talk about FEAR? but eh, I'm going to stick this out!

Fear.  I have the usual fears:  spiders, snakes, bugs, tornadoes, heights, roller coasters, ... I have other concerns, maybe not fears.  Like will I ever meet Mr. Right and will I know that I'm making the right decision? Will I totally fail at whatever it is I'm currently trying? Are people making fun of me behind me back or talking trash about me? Am I a really annoying person and I don't even realize it? Am I actually not a very smart person at all?  Is my work not good enough for... well, for whatever?

I suppose those are my fears. Not very exciting.

OH MY GOSH: I just read Jenni's post on this and THAT IS MY GREATEST FEAR- having something happen to my parents, my siblings, my NIECES, oh my gosh, I don't know how I would handle that. As a family, we have and are currently facing medical fears, but just the thoughts of something happening - something painful, tragic, evil - I just can't take it. Let's not think about it.

So cute. Find it here.

And since I missed the beginning of this fun blog party... I'm supposed to write about something I'm good at, sharing my knowledge or whatever.  And that caused me a lot of fear because I don't think I excel at anything.  I enjoy several different things, like scrapbooking, and photography, writing letters, writing in general, but would I dare say I'm at the point I could teach someone else? Umm.. no.

So here is the best I can do --- how to write letters.  It's kinda like talking in person but instead you are putting the conversation on paper!

I like to have the person who wrote to me, their letter in front of me when I go to write back.  That way I can at least try to answer the questions they may have sent to me. Although you probably should date letters, I never do.  (bad Bethie).

The first paragraph is usually about the person I'm writing to - I'll comment on the story they sent to me, or ask questions for more information, follow up on their letter.  Then I try to answer questions they may have asked me and then introduce new information towards the bottom.  Of course I don't manage to do this all the time, but most of the time.

And I love writing thank you notes, too.  I think it's soooo important to thank people for any and every thing.  Of course for gifts - we all know that - but also for doing something nice, for allowing my organization to come speak to kids, for allowing us to use their facility for something. And I try to make it personal -" your students were so attentive and showed such a great interest in the subject" or "your facility really helped us serve the people in your community and your staff were so helpful to us while we were there." I love letting people know how much they are appreciated, that someone did a good job, or just because they were nice.

So it's much the same in conversation.  People generally enjoy talking about themselves, so just ask a few questions, find what you have in common (or whatever subject you can bear to listen about) and get the conversation ball rolling. :)

I really don't feel this was very helpful to anyone (sorry) but hey, I did it anyway! :) Now I'm going to go check into other people's posts so I can learn something new!

Silly Insecurities

"I have learned to live each day as it comes, and not to borrow trouble by dreading tomorrow. It is the dark menace of the future that makes cowards of us."
Dorothy Dix

Ya'll, I totally psyched myself out this weekend. I can be very outgoing. But when I'm the odd man out, when everyone knows each other except me, I tend to become a wall flower.

Since my weekend plans were changed due to everyone being sick, I agreed to go to an event, a party of sorts, with a friend. When the day got here, I really didn't want to get off the couch. I knew no one would talk to me, I'd be left out, I would be undressed, people would wonder who I was and why I was there...I think you get the picture.

I just have to shake my head. Seriously, why do I do this to myself? While all the above was somewhat true, I had a good time visiting with my friend and an older guy that talked about wars all night. Even if I only visited with the friend I went with, it would have been fine. I enjoy catching up with him.

Good grief, I really got worked up about what to wear, should I take a gift, what will I do if no one talks to me, blah blah. So childish, these insecurities. Do we ever outgrow them? -sigh-

I can hear those words, Don't go borrowing trouble. I'm really good at borrowing trouble. Hee hee. But, I'm glad I had a good time and maybe learned a lesson?

How was your weekend?

Motivation... oh where have you gone?

Sunrise this morning, looking across the road from my house

"I will greet this day with love in my heart. And how will I do this? Henceforth will I look on all things with love and be born again. I will love the sun for it warms my bones; yet I will love the rain for it cleanses my spirit. I will love the light for it shows me the way; yet I will love the darkness for it shows me the stars. I will welcome happiness as it enlarges my heart; yet I will endure sadness for it opens my soul. I will acknowledge rewards for they are my due; yet I will welcome obstacles for they are my challenge."  -- Og Mandino

I haven't been motivated to do much in the past few weeks. I haven't started cleaning up and cleaning out and simplifying this way. I haven't even packed up Christmas yet. What am I saying - I'm still listening to Christmas music!! I think the drama is beginning to weigh on me again - the worries we have happening with health issues in the family. :(  Please say a prayer for my family and God will know exactly where all to apply it. Thank you.

This little girl is the light of our lives. Granted she refuses to sleep at night and isn't the light of her mama and daddy's lives at the moment, but she is so joyous. Do you see her little toothie in the pic on the left? One little toothie has poked out. My oh my, she's not a happy teether.  But thankfully we've found a gel that works and Sister Beth gave us some teething tablets by that same company that works, too. I'll find the name and share with you later - all natural! So that made us all a bit happier.

Any suggestions on getting a 6-month-old to sleep through the night? Please share. She hates her crib at home and refuses to sleep in it. Play in it - yes. Sleep - no.

In other news, I'm working on my first ever Cara Box! I have a few ideas I have to work on this weekend so it's ready to mail soon! I need to read those directions again... but anyway, I'm so excited! I have been given Amy to send a Cara Box to with New Year's Resolutions in it... and she's a Carolina Gal living in Kansas! So I plan to help her remember all about the Greatness that is South Carolina!! :) :)  Lovin' it already.

*sigh* Ok, I'm off to do something ... not sure what but something. Motivate me, ya'll... help me out here! :)

Friday's Letter

Dear Friday's Letter, I'm sorry my life revolves around my niece, Macy, these days. I took some time off and spent it spoiling her, so I will have more variety of photos now that I'm back at work full-time. Dear New Year, I'm asking that you be kinder to my family than 2012. I realize I received many blessings - MANY blessings - but please let 2013 have a bit less drama. Dear One Little Word, the reason I'm choosing this word for 2013 is because of the drama of 2012.  My word this year is Simplify. Simplify my life, my living, my material things, my desires, my goals, my focus, ... get back to the basics.  I'm very excited about this word.  Dear Pressed Clovers,  I'm very excited for you, too. I had my first sale to a stranger totally new customer AND she came back for another book!!  Dear Cara Box, I'm so giddy over being part of this for the first time this month. I hope I can live up to some of the other boxes I've seen featured!  Dear new blogger friends - this has introduced me to the most faithful people I've ever met. You inspire me everyday to read with you as you overcome struggles and celebrate blessings. Thank you for opening your hearts and lives up to me with every post!! Dear Praying Peeps, please keep my niece, Macy, and my dad in your prayers as we have a few more hurdles to overcome! :) 

OH! And thanks to Clover Lane for teaching me how to make a dadgim banner for my blog! Holy Cow Batman, it took me long enough, didn't it? Now it's cuter and prettier... Thank You!

Join me at Friday's Letters on Ashley's new blog, The Sweet Season!!

Friday's Letter

One of my favorite pictures of the year!

Dear 2012, I'd like to take a moment to reflect on how this year has turned out.  I perused my former blog posts to help me, so here goes nothing.

Dear January, the Sock Hop went better than I imagined and is the number one hit page out of my blog. Everyone wants to know how to do a sock hop and I hope my work helps them. I chose Breathe as my word for 2012 but honestly, it didn't work out too well.  And I introduced everyone to my Prayer Peeps, who are awesome.

Dear February, the month of sickness. Let's not talk about it.

Dear March, thank you for finally revealing the gender of my sweet niece! We waited forever, but found out just in time for my sister's first baby shower.

Dear April, Of course, once we discovered the gender, mom and I set about doing the nursery! Sweet pinks and greens... getting ready for baby.  Also had a bit of drama at a performing art center, but it was resolved quite nicely!

Dear May, Katie had another baby shower and Mom received the honors at her retirement dinner!

Dear June, Ahhh... June! You brought me my sweet baby niece, Macy! *sniff sniff* Several posts were dedicated to her. My other sweet niece, AH, put on quite a show! 

Dear July, We celebrated several firsts, including my first Friday's Letter and my first installment of 30 Things on Thursday.

Dear August, I finally followed my dreams and took a step out of my comfort zone - and opened Pressed Clovers on Etsy!  It was scary, crazy timing just before a Presidential election and it was WONDERFUL.

Dear September, My birth month! You can still make my birthday wish come true! And... I gave you a behind the scenes look at scrapbooking Beth-style.

Dear October, you brought about some tough days.  I still believe we are tougher, but only through God's strength.

Dear November,  Thankfully, the election ended.  And I was able to celebrate Thanksgiving and Macy's Baptism within four days of each other. Ack!

Dear December, you have brought about happiness. Dad's last treatment *thank you for your prayers!*  and Christmas. And I LOVE Christmas!

Dear 2013, I do hope for a more serene and peaceful year, if possible.  That would be lovely.

Sincerely,

Beth.


PS.  Linking up today! (Monday! 12/31)

Memorial Monday

This is all over Facebook, The Elf on the Shelf
honoring the victims of Sandy Hook Elementary.

I know, today is Muffin Monday and I usually post an adorable picture of my sweet kitten for the world to see.

But today, I just don't have it in me.  For whatever reason, it's like I have a delayed reaction to the Sandy Hook sadness.  I didn't see much of it this weekend until last night and this morning.  And now, it's like a heaviness sitting on my chest - a sadness smothering me. I can't imagine those families, how they'll endure Christmas, how they will be strong for their other children, how they are even breathing at this point.  Beyond our understanding... so ... sad.  And that is so inadequate of a description.

Things that give hope in this bleakness - the #20things / #26things aspect of paying goodness forward (although I believe it should be #27things and include the mother, who was also an innocent victim).  Already Twitter is alight with the good deeds people are doing in honor of those lost in this tragic event.  Honestly, we should be doing good deeds anyway, paying goodness forward because it's the right thing to do.  Showing love and spreading joy.  But it's so touching to see people going out and deliberately doing good in honor of those lost. The impact of their lives are like ripples across this nation, setting off good deeds from coast to coast.

Conversations need to be had but not today. I'm sick of hearing people scream from both sides of the spectrum.  Give it a rest today. Let's honor the people we no longer have with us today, honor those who were so brave in the face of evil, honor those who carry images with them they'll never forget.  And let's have a moment to mourn as a nation for the loss of innocence on so very many levels.

I'm looking to God, asking for Him to provide comfort, hope, peace, and love during this time.  I'm counting my blessings and hugging my nieces. I'm doing my best to focus on the good in this nation.  The sadness is easily overwhelming but there is good, too. Lord, I believe You can bring together good in any situation, so I choose to look for the good.

Friday's Letters

Dear Christmas, I'm really excited about you this year! Not so much last year, but my priorities weren't in the proper order.  This year, I appreciate you so much more for the right reasons. Dear Heat in my Office, please please please unfreeze and kick back in! This is day two of cccooolllddd temps indoors and it's killing me. (I wore flip flops today! ACK!)

Dear Creative Juices, I'm excited about these new Christmas ornaments!!  So easy, so fun, YAY! I learned all about them from The Ornament Girl's Blog, found here.  Other tutorials, too!  Dear Cancer, you suck. Just an FYI. Dear People Who Pray, thank you.  Your prayers have meant the world... God is listening! Dear God, thanks for that awesome display last night.  I felt so close to you praying underneath a sky of falling stars, like you were shouting for joy as I spoke. And I also know you've got this in your hands.

Dear Etsy,  I love you coolness.  And I love the awesome shop owners with their neat-o ideas, customized orders and FREE GIFTS!  *sigh* How wonderful is that??  Check out the store of my most recent purchase (this takes you to her sold items since she's on vacation right now... you can get an idea of her awesomeness).  Dear readers, Thanks for swinging by and checking the blog out... feel free to say HAY!  :)

Hyperventilating...

Breathe Beth, Breathe...

Ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygosh.

OK, so this morning one of the folks I follow, Mrs. Laura over at Mouse in the Kitchen wrote about how starting a blog has taught her bravery and thus she is opening her own store, Designs by Mouse, right there on the corner of her blog.  It has adorable ruffled scarves there right now, for everyone to go check out!  Just click right here!

I totally understand her fears of putting your creations out there to the public and announcing - HERE I AM, YOU GREAT BIG WORLD! PLEASE LIKE ME AND MY STUFF.  I took a similar step this year, just before election time (am I CRAZY?!) and opened my very own Etsy store called Pressed Clovers.

It was so scary. What if everyone laughed and whispered behind my back? What if no one liked my idea or everyone else's ideas were better than mine? All these insecurities bubbled up, but I took the step anyway.

My shop isn't fancy. It has no cool header - much like this blog - no cool header. I don't know how to add that stuff so it never got added. But, it still showcases my products... little pieces of me.

And I have had friends believe in me - oh my, have I had friends believe in me!! Paulene (check out her cool store here - she cheered me on from the first time I uttered the thoughts of opening an online store.  And Grace - she has single-handedly kept me in business! Even trusted me enough to make gifts for her co-workers, which really touched me.

But today. Today I received a convo from a perfect stranger. Someone I've never met but likes my books and wanted to ask about ordering two. Not that she will - she may not. But, she asked. A stranger. *sniff sniff*  I'm getting all emotional because someone LIKES ME! SHE REALLY LIKES ME! (or my stuff, really, but I am my stuff!!!)  This is what she liked - my Christmas Scrapbook.  I'm happy, can you tell?

I admire people who can put themselves out there with total confidence. I admire small business owners and independent stores who are living the dream everyday, despite the fact the dream comes with a lot of realities. My hat goes off to every single one of you. And I also cheer each person who shops with these stores, shops and independent owners, because YOU are making their dreams come true. :)

Babysitting Woes

Oh my. I realize how little I know about children after babysitting Macy today. How do new mothers know all this stuff? But Macy did well with her fill-in babysitter, even if she had to do some job training.



Today was one of dad's treatments so mom needed to be with him. I think this round was a little rougher than the first two, so it just makes me nervous for the last three. If you pray, please say a prayer for my Pops.

I had dinner tonight with a high school friend who is married with five kids. She just had twins and they are Super Cute. It's always good to catch up with an old friend. We are in very different places in our lives, but that's ok.

I'm literally falling sleep so let me go crash! Night!

posted from Bloggeroid

In everything give thanks - 2012.

found here

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances,
for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 

My spiritual life has really taken a turn for the better this year.  We've seen some bumps in the road during 2012, but God pulled us through every single time.

I'm so thankful that God has brought me closer to Him this year through #shereadstruth.  This devotional seems to click with me and make sense to me in a way I haven't had individual devotionals work for me before.  It's a joy, eye opening and life changing.

I tell you, 2012 hasn't been easy. Describing it as a roller coaster would be pretty appropriate. A group of six people prayed for my family - they would drop everything and pray the moment a text message or email was received from me.  They will forever be special people to my family... we call them our Prayer Peeps.  They have taught me so much about faithfulness and prayer. So very grateful for them.

Something I'm still trying to learn - how to be thankful in all things.  Just the word "cancer" scares the poop out of me. Especially when it's associated with my dad, my awesome, wonderful, larger than life Pops.  How can he have cancer?  And I have struggled with how to pray about it - asking God for His will to be done, but please let that will be for dad to be cured of this horrible disease!

But Dr. Charles Stanley's monthly devotional came out and there it was written out for me: Be thankful in all things. All things. Not just those that I like. And so, I'm finding ways to even be thankful for the bad things in life, because they do serve a purpose and good can come from them.  (Blind faith in God's plan being one of them.) So I pray still for him to be cured, but I also thank God for the time I've already had with dad, for the guidance he's given me over all these years and for helping me find the priorities in life again. Sometimes you need a reminder. (I didn't say it was easy, but I'm learning...)